City birds appear to be more afraid of women than men, and scientists have no idea why. Men could get about a meter closer to birds than women could before the animals flew away, regardless of what the men and women were wearing, what their height was or how they tried to approach the creatures.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/city-birds-appear-more-afraid-of-women-than-men-and-scientists-have-no-idea-why/
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City birds appear to be more afraid of women than men, and scientists have no idea why
European Great Tits and 36 other bird species on the continent are more afraid of women than they are of men, according to a recent study—and researchers have no idea why.
In the study, men could get about a meter closer to birds than women could before the animals flew away, according to the results. This pattern remained regardless of what the men and women were wearing, what their height was or how they tried to approach the creatures. That suggests birds may be able to suss out the sex of a human, though the researchers aren’t sure how.
“I fully believe our results, that urban birds react differently based on the sex of the person approaching them, but I can’t explain them right now,” said Daniel Blumstein, a co-author of the study and a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, in a statement.
The researchers looked at birds living in urban centers in five European countries. They included birds that are known to flee as soon as a human approaches, such as magpies, and those that tend to flap off later, such as pigeons. The outsize fear response to women was consistent across the species.
In the paper, the team hypothesized that birds may be sensing chemical signals, such as pheromones, or using cues such as body shape to recognize a person’s sex. But more research is needed before they can come to any conclusions. Notably, previous findings in mammals also suggest these animals can tell men and women apart: for example, lab rats have been observed to feel greater stress when male researchers handle them than when female researchers do so.
For those interested, here’s the link to the peer reviewed journal article:
https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/pan3.70226
I’ll believe it, with a condition being it is different for children and the elderly.
Maybe the birds are looking at the woman and thinking, “Hmmm, I bet she knows her way around a cooking pot, and I don’t like the way she’s looking at me.”.
Birds are often ignored by larger animals and hunted by smaller animals. Maybe it has something to do with that?
I wonder if the expressed gender of the person matters.
Smell? Perfumes could be driving them off?
Finally a way to determine who is female and who is make. Science has been waiting for this.
It’s all about generating the right smell..
But seriously, I’m intrigued. I’m even surprised that they can so readily tell the difference in another species.
Women tend to be louder
Now try it with trans folks and see what they do.
Are women more likely to notice/watch birds? Animals are very sensitive to body language, maybe they can sense when they’re being observed
Did the women wear makeup in the studies? Birds can see more colors. Maybe it startles them.
I guess my first thought was hair. Long hair might resemble ruffled feathers or other signs of avian agitation.
I’d like to know the sex makeup of the birds. Did male and female birds fly away from women equally?
I’d suspect it’s longer hair generally. Lots of birds have aggressive feather gestures on their heads to intimidate other birds, increasing their overall size. They probably read women as very aggressive accordingly, even if they have short haircuts. To birds they probably just think women can puff out hair to be long at-will.
Definitely would like to see birds responses to male punks with mohawks in a paper. For science.
I love the random studies like this that gets published
They probably heard about my mother in law who shoots starlings with a bb gun
I’v been saying for a while women are like cats, seems like birds are picking up on it to
Does the makeup and foundation on your skin “females” create a weird mask of colors to the birds eye color spectrum that we cannot see ?
So does that means that men have better chances at becoming Disney princesses than women?
Clip clop sound of heels be scary!
> Great European Tits
curious name
Maybe it’s from dudes throwing random bits of food at birds cause our monkey brains think it’s funny and cool to watch birds eat what we give them.
Kinda like how only men can stare at a fire, not think of anything, and be perfectly happy.
Most animals could feel the soul of the persons
If you know what I mean
City birds appear to find the male ape more curious than the female of the species and lingers moment longer in observation before using consideration to move away so as to not directly interact with either sex of the flightless land dweller.
Genetic memory from gatherer chicks stealing eggs.
I’m kidding, obviously, but not completely unthinkable.
Clearly, they didn’t study NYC birds. The pigeons in particular are afraid of NOTHING.
The amount of women who have told me they are scared of birds or just hate them is pretty large too. Never heard that from a man. I wonder if that has something to do with this…
Cos the female of the species is much deadlier than the male!
I think it makes sense. I have parrots and if i wear specific patterns colors or god forbid have a scrunchies on my wrist, they throw a huge overdramatic fit like like ive turned into the devil
I have a theory. City birds are ignored by everyone except children. Women, to a bird, look more like children than men do.
Like any decent wingman, birds know that bros come before hoes.